Minneapolis-area lawyers try to stop ICE deportation efforts: report

The message was sent out on February 6 to a private email list and went to several hundred people who are a part of the Minnesota Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, a member that received the email told Fox News.

The same day the email was sent, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison wrote a formal legal opinion that "prohibits state and local law enforcement agencies from holding someone based on an immigration detainer if the person would otherwise be released from custody."

"ICE at the PSF," the subject line of the widespread email said, possibly in reference to the Public Safety Facility, the outlet reported. The email added, "LRC just got word that plain clothes ICE officers have been spotted at the Hennepin County PSF today. Let’s do all we can to keep our clients safe in these difficult times."

Fox reported that a number of emails from different defense lawyers ensued, with some suggesting that illegal immigrants who are on trial should not appear in court in order to avoid being seen by ICE agents.

One attorney on the email list, Ronnie Santana, responded to the email, "I was thinking we may want to have a conversation within the organization about pooling together [a]nd asking to convert hearings to [Z]oom for clients that we think would be targeted by ICE."

As President Donald Trump has taken action in the first weeks of his administration, some sanctuary states and cities have pushed back on his efforts to deport illegal immigrants from the United States. When Trump came into office, he signed a number of executive orders to put a mass deportation effort into motion.

Attorney JaneAnne Murray, who works for Murray Law LLC, responded in the email thread and said she "called the court’s clerk and orally requested a [Z]oom appearance."

"I explained the immigration circumstances and why I don’t want to lay them all out in a motion that may get reviewed by ICE. Shortly thereafter, I got an email authorizing my client to appear by [Z]oom (I must appear in person). Prosecutor was copied on the email but not consulted on the request," she wrote.

Multiple other attorneys wrote back, suggesting that they could also ask for Zoom meetings for their clients illegally in the US in court.

ICE, in a memo from January, stated, "Generally, ICE's immigration enforcement actions in our near courthouses include actions against targeted aliens." These include those illegal immigrants who are a threat to public safety as well as those with prior criminal convictions or have entered the US again after being deported previously.

"There is a legitimate debate over whether ICE should target those seeking judicial review in their cases," George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley told Fox News. "Few immigrants will want to risk a hearing if they will be detained as a cost of appearing. However, if ICE has a right to access, the use of virtual hearings to prevent federal authorities could cross the Rubicon for some judges as an improper use of federal authority to deter federal enforcement."

Turley added that their using Zoom for court appearances "will raise a serious legal question over the proper use of court resources and orders" if those meetings will help illegal immigrants evade deportation.